Slow Stream Rehabilitation for Older Adults: A Scoping Review.

ABSTRACTCanadian older adults with complex health problems are often considered ineligible for traditional rehabilitation programs but may benefit from slow stream rehabilitation (SSR). This scoping review summarizes the literature related to SSR for older adults, within single-payer health care systems. METHODS: Peer-reviewed and grey-literature documents relevant to older adults in SSR were systematically reviewed. RESULTS: 1,445 documents were screened independently by two reviewers [Cohen Kappa value of 0.78 (CI = 0.73, 0.83)], and included 18 documents. SSR programs were found to be multidisciplinary with a mean duration ranging from 30 to 141.2 days. SSR participants were more likely to be female, with a mean age range of 72-82 years, multiple co-morbidities and mild-to-moderate cognitive impairments. SSR participants demonstrated improvements in physical and functional measures. DISCUSSION: SSR programs have the potential to be an integral part of the continuum of care for older adults with complex medical histories.

Therapy Use for Children With Developmental Conditions: Analysis of Colorado Medicaid Data.

STUDY PURPOSE: To examine therapy use and spending for Medicaid-enrolled infants and toddlers with developmental conditions. METHODS: Sample infants and toddlers had a diagnosis (eg, cerebral palsy) or developmental delay (DD). Colorado Children's Medicaid administrative outpatient therapy claims (2006-2008) were used to estimate differences, by condition type and number of comorbid chronic conditions (CCCs), of any physical therapy (PT)/occupational therapy (OT) and Medicaid PT/OT spending. RESULTS: The sample included 20 959 children. Children with at least 2 CCCs had higher odds of PT/OT than children with no CCC. Children with DD had 12-fold higher odds of having any PT/OT compared with children with diagnosis. Children with a DD and 2 CCCs had the highest PT/OT spending. CONCLUSIONS: Medicaid PT/OT use and spending are higher for children with more CCCs and those with DD because children with DD receive more specialized PT/OT.